London-based Greenline Environmental, which offers a 24/7 waste collection and disposal service has modernised its operations with paperless PDAs for drivers, a new bespoke software system and the introduction of a Pay-By-Weight service for trade waste collections.

Darryn Hodges, Managing Director, Greenline Environmental, said: “It is important to move with the times and this technology is helping us to provide a better, more cost-effective service to our customers. It is also helping us educate them. Gone are the days when you can just throw anything in your bin and forget about it. We now have all the information we need at the touch of a button so we can show it to them and help them improve how they manage their waste by looking at other options such as separate glass or food waste collections.

Greenline chose the ENVIROWEIGH bin-weighing system from Vehicle Weighing Solutions Ltd (VWS), which can be weights and measures certified for Pay-By-Weight services, for its 26t trade waste refuse truck.

Darryn continued: “We recognised that we needed to identify when bins are overweight so installing bin weighing was a priority. Otherwise it can end up costing us more to dispose of the waste than the customer pays us to collect the bin. The other day we collected a 75kg bin from a customer and it weighed half a tonne because it was full of food waste!”

The company has also installed PurGo software from VWS Software Solutions, an ERP system designed specifically for waste operators. The software uses handheld PDAs to integrate with the bin-weighing and other business systems to manage Greenline’s waste collection and administrative processes including reporting and invoicing.

Darryn added: “Our drivers use the PDAs to do everything now so we run a virtually paperless operation. They are easy to use and do not require any training. The drivers log on when they start work, download their round for the day, and all the information is there about the customer and what they are collecting. They also serve as Sat Nav devices, which is really important for us as the drivers are travelling to different locations across London every day.

“Our customers love the new system. They receive a message telling them when the driver is en-route and when he has arrived so they can plan things at their end. If there are any issues with the collection, such as no bin or poor access, the driver can take a picture and send it to the back office who can deal with it immediately.”